Attempted Murder charge follows crowbar attack

A Dingman Township man is charged with attempted murder after he allegedly pushed the victim into a glass door and struck him three times in the head with a crow bar, according to police.

By BETH BRELJEPocono Record Writer

A Dingman Township man is charged with attempted murder after he allegedly pushed the victim into a glass door and struck him three times in the head with a crow bar, according to police.State police found a severely beaten, barely conscious victim, bleeding in the alleged attacker’s apartment bathroom Wednesday night.Vincent John Colletta, 22, is being held at the Pike County Correctional Facility on $750,000 bond following the attack at his Ash Lane home in the Pocono Woodlands development of Dingman Township.A criminal complaint and Pike County District Attorney Ray Tonkin offer the following account: Around 7 p.m. Wednesday, state police went to serve a warrant for Colletta’s arrest on a Pike County parole violation from an original charge of burglary. Police said they searched the home and found a man barely conscious in the bathroom.The man was bleeding profusely, could not speak and his head and body were so severely beaten that he could not be identified. At the time, police presumed that it was Colletta, but later, the victim was identified as 19-year-old Kevin Munson.Munson was flown to Lehigh Valley Hospital and is in critical condition. He had deep lacerations to the front and back of his head, a fractured nasal cavity, a fractured skull and a punctured lung.Police interviewed Colletta’s upstairs neighbor, and he reported that his wife had called to say she heard moaning coming from Colletta’s apartment.The neighbor said he went to Colletta’s apartment and spoke with Colletta, who said the moaning was from a friend who was drunk.

Acting strangely

State police spoke with Robert Koetzle, who reported that Munson had stayed at his house the night before, and left to do some errands. They agreed to meet a short while later, but Munson never showed up.After numerous texts and calls to Munson’s phone, Colletta answered. Koetzle told police that Colletta told him that Munson was with his mother and that he had let Colletta borrow his cellphone and vehicle.Colletta agreed to meet with Koetzle and when they did, Colletta was wearing Munson’s clothes and shoes. When asked where Munson was, Colletta told Koetzle that he was at Munson’s house. Koetzle said he would follow Colletta to Munson’s home and pick him up.When they got to the home, Koetzle told Colletta to go get Munson, but Colletta started acting strangely. He knocked on Munson’s door but nobody answered.Koetzle then called Munson’s mother, who told him to take Munson’s car from Colletta and take it to Koetzle’s own home.Munson’s mother, Susan Munson, called state police after she was unable to make contact with her son. She told police that she feared something may have happened to him, and that he was supposed to meet with Colletta.State police showed her a photo of the victim found on the floor in Colletta’s bathroom and she identified him as her son.

Wearing victim’s sneakers

Colletta was taken into custody on the probation/parole violation warrant. Troopers noticed Colletta wearing the sneakers that Koetzle reported belonged to Munson.Colletta told police that he pushed Munson into a glass door, and struck him three times in the head with a crow bar. According to the criminal complaint, he said that after striking Munson with the crow bar, he dragged his unconscious body into the bathroom, and attempted to clean the blood from the scene with household cleaning products.He said he took the crow bar and put it into Munson’s vehicle. Colletta also said he removed Munson’s clothing, including his sneakers, an Apple iPhone, $20 and four bags of heroin.Colletta has been charged with criminal attempt to commit criminal homicide; aggravates assault; robbery; theft; receiving stolen property; possessing instruments of crime; simple assault; recklessly endangering another person; tampering with or fabricating physical evidence; flight to avoid apprehension, trial or punishment.